• EXIT POLLS SHOW POSSIBLE CHINKS IN THE KERRY ARMOR: John Kerry's near sweep of Tuesday's seven primaries and caucuses underscored his strength in the Democratic presidential race. But the results also identified possible chinks in his armor that could let a rival -- probably John Edwards -- mount a drive to stop him.

• KERRY FINDS APPEAL FAR AND WIDE: Perhaps the most surprising aspect of Tuesday's seven contests that spread almost from coast to coast was the degree to which Democrats said they were satisfied with Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts as their potential nominee.

• SHARPTON SHUT OUT: Al Sharpton, who campaigned tirelessly in the Palmetto State, calling on African American voters to help him get enough delegates to negotiate with party leaders, came in a distant third-place finish Tuesday.

• GOP ON THE OFFENSIVE: He won't be as easy to beat as Howard Dean, but GOP aides say John Kerry has plenty of his own liberal baggage and took their first shots yesterday at the candidate they consider the probable Democratic nominee.